Sustainable Fruition of Cultural Heritage in Areas Affected by Rockfalls

Abstract

This paper deals with the evaluation of rockfall risk in cultural heritage, in the frame of a quick protocol for a preliminary zonation, to ensure the safe management and sustainable fruition of the sites. Several historical complexes in mountainous areas are indeed threatened by rock slope instability, and rockfalls can be counted among the main causes of fatality. In such a complex, a rockfall risk zonation would represent a useful management tool for both the choice of specific safe tourist paths, but also for the proper employment of economic resources allocated for mitigation measures. Nevertheless, the management of cultural heritage lacks such plans and tourists are often exposed to risks, while funds are often employed without a specific priority. In this paper, a quick procedure was tested at the historical complex of Taormina (southern Italy), which hosts numerous tourist spots often affected by rockfalls. The Saracen castle, for example, is currently closed to the public due to the rockfalls that repeatedly affected the entrance road, while Castelmola village, counted among one of the most beautiful Italian villages, stands on the top of a cliff affected by frequent rockfalls involving the only access road. The approach is composed of several steps and requires a heavy site characterization in terms of historical records and geostructural setting. The risk assessment procedure was chosen among the semiquantitative ones available in literature, and the final assessed risk was represented on a thematic map to provide a tool which could be used as a base for the planning of final remedial works.

Definition of an Operative Methodology for the Management of Rockfalls along with the Road Network

“…Internationally, road management safety in case of rockfall occurrence poses a major challenge in emergency management. In the international literature, there are various risk assessment procedures aimed at a correct rockfall risk evaluation and management in mountain areas [52][53][54] or sites with cultural and geological heritage [55][56][57]. These procedures are based on the use of diverse instruments and tools like terrestrial photogrammetry [58,59], terrestrial laser scanner (TLS) [60][61][62][63], and uncrewed aerial vehi-cles [64][65][66].…”

Pars pro toto—Remote Sensing Data for the Reconstruction of a Rounded Chalcolithic Site from NE Romania: The Case of Ripiceni–Holm Settlement (Cucuteni Culture)

“…Currently, within the interdisciplinary scientific community focusing on archaeology and its sustainable management, it is commonly accepted that archaeological sites are threatened more than ever by the effects of increasingly occurring natural disasters like gullying [3,4], landslides [5,6], rock fall [7], floods [8,9], sea-level rise [10], coastal erosion [11,12], and human activities (high-intensity agriculture, infrastructure works, and urban sprawl) [13]. Natural disasters, increasingly more intense and frequent with the backdrop of climate change, pose a tremendous threat for cultural heritage [14,15].…”

Rockfall susceptibility along the regional road network of Aosta Valley Region (northwestern Italy)

“…Rockfalls are unpredictable phenomena usually involving small volumes, the areas involved are very small and often punctual, with high energy and long runout distances (Frattini et al, 2012). The relating hazard characterization and forecast is still a challenge, depending on various factors for any single investigated area (Mineo, 2020;Mineo & Pappalardo, 2019). Great importance is given to the characterization of the rockfall spatial distribution, their frequency and intensity, which are often assessed by landslide inventories (Hungr et al, 1999;Volkwein et al, 2011).…”